Need some advice on Medical Care

A friend of mine is incredibly depressed and is reaching out for help. She had been on two perscriptions, Seraquil and Klonapin. She has a 2 year old son and makes enough money to not be considered for medicaid or any other service, but not enough to pay for perscriptions or co pays. She had to cancell a few doctors apointments due to emergencies, and so they stopped her script. She is intensley depressed now, suicidal and not thinking rationally.

What information can I give her, what can she do? Is there any place in Albany NY that she could go to for a perscription, help...anything that she could afford?

I know there are alot of intellegent people on here, I trust you won't steer me or her wrong. Thank you for any suggestions.



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She is also afraid that If she goes to any kind of counceling and admits she is suicidal, that she will loose custody of her son. Any suggestions on this?

Your local Department of Human Services.. their whole purpose for being with stuff like this.. Contact them see if they can't put you in touch with a group or service that offers just what you're looking for..

I found no Department of Human Services, but I do see the Department of Social Services here in Albany. She has gone to them, she makes too much to get any assistance from them.

I see a Suicide Crisis center here, maybe that can give her someone to talk to, but she is afraid to mention that she is suicidal for fear of loosing her son. Also, I don't see a way for her to get those perscriptions for less, maybe online?

There is always the national suicide hotline. Also, if she is religous at all you can utilize the church. She should be able to go through either of them without any fear of losing her kid. I'm in the military and get free health care, so I take it for granted very often, but I can see how this can be a very tough situation.

I guess one more thing to mention is that the two perscription drugs she was on are extremley addictive and the doctor who was perscribing them stopped her perscription because she had to cancel/reschedule an appointment. Its dangerous to stop them cold turkey I believe, could she do something about this?

Without getting in to see a doctor, or at least getting her regular dr. on the phone, I don't think she can. I'd just keep a close eye, and if things really don't look right, either because of medication or thinking she might try something, get her to the emergency room. The ER does take care of suicide related stuff. If I were you, I'd probably call the national suicide hotline myself, 1-800-273-TALK (8255), they can probably give you better advice than me, and it's free and confidential. I'm not free though.

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Originally Posted by Jacob1023

There is always the national suicide hotline. Also, if she is religous at all you can utilize the church. She should be able to go through either of them without any fear of losing her kid. I'm in the military and get free health care, so I take it for granted very often, but I can see how this can be a very tough situation.

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I am going to offer the hotline, atleast so she can get some kind of counceling. Still, I am not sure how to get her the perscriptions she needs. :\

JMHO but if she is really that suicidal she and you shouldn't be worrying about her child being taken away, she and you should solely be focused on getting her better, because if she really did go through with the suicide bit, then where would her child be????? Sorry if I sound harsh or rude because I don`t mean to be, I`m just trying to help and this is VERY VERY serious, she needs to get better. Maybe there is somebody her child can go to for awhile so she can get better

Ok maybe I should add more information to this.

She is not my just my friend, shes my girlfriend. We were going to move in together, she was excited about our relationship and then bam, two days ago she told me she is not ready to be in a relationship and ended it out of no where. I am staying at a friends right now while she takes time.

She has been talking to me and says she is really depressed and is pushing me away cause thats all she knows how to do.

Her son is her life, she wont give him up and doesnt want them to take him away because she is depressed which they will do if she is admitted.

she cant afford really anything right now, im so lost..i dont know how to help her. I'm going to call the hotline now, but she needs those meds, and she knows it.

If she is suicidal, you should stop worrying about how to get meds for her and call the suicide hotline yourself and explain. How are you going to feel if you find out she killed herself because she didn't seek help for fear of losing her kid? You're lucky that she feels you are a close enough friend to turn to, to let you know how she is feeling, so help her and her son by calling the right people and explaining what it going on. Medical professionals can assess the situation and decide what help they can give her. If she puts herself into the medical hands for treatment, she can probably dictate who takes care of her son while she's getting treatment.

The child doesn't need to be taken care of by a suicidal person. Sorry. That's the important thing. People who are not thinking clearly can make a bad choice in very little time.

She can look for low-cost clinics, go to the ER, call her doctor and explain and see if she can get an appointment. She cannot simply restart the drugs if the doctor cancelled them because she no-showed to appointments though. She would have to be seen by a doctor that can say what prescriptions she needs. Unfortunately, there is no legitimate source for drugs other than going through a medical doctor, whether it's the ER doctor, a clinic doctor, or the state hospital doctors. She can alse try looking for a womens clinic, like the places that counsel pregnant girls about abortions or adoptions and such, and see if they can help her out with a low cost place to see her.

Good luck, and I hope she gets some help quickly.

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Originally Posted by spitfireashlea

its dangerous to stop them cold turkey

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+1

Been through this...sadly. The most helpful thing for her, is just to remind her that she has people that need her. Not in a cliche way, but I mean, what would her kid do without her? If she's so concerned and won't talk to a professional about this stuff for fear of loosing them, they should draw on THAT to snap them out of it, at least the suicidal part. Depression is hard, and sadly, there's not much you can say or do that will make them feel better. Just remind them about what they should live for as a start...

In my opinion, I'd stop suggesting things like a suicide help line and all that cuz a lot of the time, it just makes things worse. It makes people feel like they have a problem and makes them feel worse about themselves, which is kinda the complete opposite of what is really needed. I'm not saying don't help her seek help if she WANTS it...This is just from my experiance...Statistically, most people that TELL someone they're suicidal, only want attention (if they actually were, they prob would've just gone ahead and done it without warning).

I'm not trying to upset anyone, I'm just playing devils advocate here. I hope she does get the help she needs. Btw : you can go to WalMart and say you have no insurance, then, they give lots of discounts on perscriptions (usually $4, though i suppose it does depend on what is actually being perscribed)..

I sincerely hope everything works out for the best

If it helps, tell her I've been to emergency counseling (as in I called and they said if I didn't carry myself to the center RIGHT NOW the deputies were going to come pick me up) because I was suicidal and did not want to lose custody of my son. They were even understanding enough to allow me to contract for safety and go home instead of being institutionalized because I was concerned that his father would use institutionalization against me in court. They even let me bring him to appointments when it was either that or not go and they found someone to watch him for me while I was talking with the therapist.

If she has someone at home who can vouch for her safety and keep an eye on her child, there's no reason for him (or her) to be taken away. If she does need to go somewhere, hopefully she has you or other family she can depend on to watch her child so that he doesn't get put into the system, which would absolutely not be best for anyone. It's a big and reasonable fear for a lot of single parents, and it's definitely something that often acts as a barrier to us acting for help with mental illness.

Many doctors or drug companies can help with lower cost prescriptions. Unfortunately I don't see clonazepam or quetiapine on the $4 list for wal mart. There are a number of different medications for depression, though. Perhaps she could work with her doctor to find one that is affordable and works for her.

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Originally Posted by tiny_tiger60978

In my opinion, I'd stop suggesting things like a suicide help line and all that cuz a lot of the time, it just makes things worse. It makes people feel like they have a problem and makes them feel worse about themselves, which is kinda the complete opposite of what is really needed. I'm not saying don't help her seek help if she WANTS it...This is just from my experiance...Statistically, most people that TELL someone they're suicidal, only want attention (if they actually were, they prob would've just gone ahead and done it without warning).

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There's no doubt that often when someone is being vocal about their suicidal thoughts that they are indeed attention seeking, but that doesn't mean they aren't serious about it. More often than not, they are reaching out and the attention is vital. From what I've scanned through and read, she's obviously depressed and someone off of their anti-depressants can do stupid things. She needs to seek help if she's mentally crashing.

I'm sorry, but telling someone NOT to seek mental help is really dangerous. Personally, I'd feel uncomfortable about giving any advice in this situation but to seek help. I wouldn't want to be the one (say 1500 miles away) that my non-professional advice indirectly caused them to commit suicide, leaving their child, girlfriend and loved ones behind.

IMO, call into a hotline, talk to someone in a hospital, speak to a church, call family, etc. Do whatever you have to do to make sure she gets the help, if she needs it.

Just to clairify : I wasn't trying to say don't seek help, I was just simply trying to say that if she doesn't WANT help not to FORCE it on her. As you said, depressed ppl just off meds CAN do stupid things and snap if pushed...Also, I'm not saying that she's not serious, this situation IS serious. I was more just stating a statistic and saying maybe all she wants is to feel cared for (as in that's why she wants attention). I certainly am not trying to say "dont seek help when you know you need it" (sorry if it came off that way), just that trying to push someone like that when they don't want outside help can cause them to do something crazy b/c they feel "broken". I just think pointing out to them that IF they did what they were talking about (suicide), then look at all the people that they would leave behind. People that CARE for them and WOULD MISS THEM. Pretty sure that's what the hotline people would do.

She def. shouldn't worry about people "taking her away". Bottling it up and NOT talking can do more damage I think. I'm not saying the hotline makes things worse btw (reread that and now see how that could be mis-taken). At least that way she could talk to someone and without telling them who she is (aka they can't track her down to take her away from her kid)...

Again, I do hope she gets the help she needs.

I've dealt with a rather similar situation with a housemate of mine. He is bipolar, and his depression cycles are bad, as in, he has attempted suicide several times before. He has a job, but can't afford insurance or anything. Being in 10K medical debt already isn't helpful either.

Recently, his depression worsened, to the point where he basically stopped eating and went down to 100lbs, which is incredibly thin for his body type. He needed help. Thankfully, there is a free weekend clinic for those without insurance. He managed to get help and get a prescription to a generic medication that doesn't cost an arm and a leg, one that worked in the past. It really helped, and I know he feels a million times better.

What I remember from my mental health clinical, even if someone admits they are suicidal, that is cause for worry, but not all out panic. Mostly a mental health practitioner will want to isolate what is causing the feelings of suicide, any potential plans (whether they are realistic or not), among other things. Do you know why she stopped taking her medications? The cost?

If you contact the United Way, they are well informed about Federally funded services offered in your County and would steer you to the right place and give you a direct number to call. Where I live I can call 211 on a cell phone and get the United Way hotline service. Try it and see if that is also true in your area.

Maybe it's just me, but it seems like your friend needs more help than the advice on a snake forum can give.

I'd start with asking her doctor that was prescribing the meds where she should go as far as treatment options.

My husband is a pharmacist, and recommends the following for help with prescription costs:
http://www.pparx.org/
One of those meds is a controlled substance and the script will not be continually given out if appointments are missed, fyi.

Good luck.

I'm an outpatient therapist in a mental health clinic. A few main thoughts here..if she goes to the ER she will likely get her meds. Will they call child services? Maybe, this may depend on several factors. Perhaps she can have someone watch her child for a few days while she goes to inpatient (should only take about two days) and gets medication. Secondly, if someone is hurting someone else/self/etc. in front of you, you can call 911. Additionally, you should have some sort of Crisis Services hotline in your area to call for mental health emergencies. As for therapy, she should be able to get free therapy if she finds a clinic or psychologist's office that has PhD interns. These places will sometimes offer free therapy if you agree to see an intern. Lastly, this appears to be causing you a significant amount of distress, which I understand...have you thought about some therapy for yourself to help you though it? .
*Info provided is based on the laws in the state I live in..you may want to dig around and check the laws in your state.

Wanted to add the we often get drug reps in and they usually bring coupons or discount info with them. If she cannot afford the meds she needs to let the psychiatrist know..he/she may be aware of a solution or something that can help.

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Do you know why she stopped taking her medications? The cost?

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She had to cancell two appointments with her therapist because of lack of baby sitter and they stopped writting her meds.


I thank you for all the ideas, I will be looking into all of them.

I know that this is a snake forum, but as many of you can see there are nice enough people that are willing to help. I trust the people here, thats why I asked for advice here first. Of course I researched first, but yea, i am a wreck. I don't want to loose the only family I have. I am 22 and dating a single mother of a 2 year old son. I love him and love her...She seems to be doing ok today, but definatley different. I will be looking into all the options you all have given. I thank you so much for helping and even looking...I hope you understand how much I really appreciate this...